Some of the eight pots buried 1,300 years ago and found by a family in the backyard oh their house, in the locality of Tilcara, in the province of Jujuy, Argentina, 17 August 2010. The pots belonged to natives of this zone in the border with Bolivia. EPA/JUAN FERNANDEZ.

TILCARA, ARGENTINA.- Two brothers who were digging in the back of their house to lay the foundation of two new rooms found eight pots measuring 1.20 meters in height that have been estimated to be 1,300 years old. The discovery was made in the Carrazana family house in the neighborhood of Tilcara Malka, said the Buenos Aires daily Clarin.

"The first bit came when we had dug about 40 centimeters. Then we found a pot to the side and then a third. When we began dig deeper, came the fourth. Every time we saw more, the whole piece. At that time we made contact with the archaeologists " said Roberto Carrazana, uncle of the brothers Franco and Gonzalo, who directed the work of masonry.

These are very brittle ceramics that were apparently used to store food. Their destination is as yet uncertain, although the Secretariat of Tourism of Jujuy has anticipated that it is likely that some of them will be left on display in the house of the Carrazana, with an explanatory panel, to remember the event.

The archaeologist in charge of analyzing the pots, Humberto Mamani, pointed out that the final date from the formative period, is the year 700 of the Christian era, which would be older than the Pucara, the pre-Columbian fortress that became an emblem of the people and in 2003 was declared a World Heritage Site.